We continue our in-depth profiles of our Adler Fellows this week with second year coaching fellow Robert Mollicone. Originally from East Greenwich, Rhode Island, Robert completed both his undergraduate and graduate studies at Boston University's College of Fine Arts where he assisted on productions there, as well as the Boston University Tanglewood Institute. After completing his studies he was a member of the Spectrum Resident Artist Program at Virginia Opera and the Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program at the Washington National Opera. He was a participant in the 2011 Merola Opera Program. As an Adler Fellow, Robert has assisted on productions including The Magic Flute, Nixon in China, Moby-Dick, and The Secret Garden as well as productions with the Merola Opera Program. He has also worked with Boston Lyric Opera, Opera North, and the Baltimore Symphony.

Over the next few months, we'll be profiling each of our current Adler Fellows here at "Backstage at San Francisco Opera." If you have some questions you'd like to ask them, send us a message via email at socialmedia@sfopera.com or via Facebook or Twitter. Our first Adler Profile is mezzo-soprano Laura Krumm who you can catch this month starring in the world-premiere of Nolan Gasser's The Secret Garden as Martha Sowerby.

We're counting down the days until we open our world-premiere production of Nolan Gasser's The Secret Garden and rehearsals here at San Francisco Opera are about to head over the Bay Bridge to Zellerbach Hall at UC Berkeley. We're thrilled to be co-presenting this work with Cal Performances and we've lined up an exciting young cast who will be bringing this beloved childhood tale to life. Find out a little bit more about the Secret Garden cast in today's blog post.

This Friday, our phenomenally talented Adler Fellows will perform in their annual The Future is Now: Adler Gala Concert. Founded in 1977 as the San Francisco Affiliate Artists-Opera Program, Adler Fellowships are performance-oriented residencies for the most advanced young singers and coach/accompanists. Under the guidance of San Francisco Opera General Director David Gockley and Opera Center Director Sheri Greenawald, the Adler Fellowship Program offers intensive individual training and roles of increasing importance in San Francisco Opera's main-stage season.

Brian Jagde is a tenor and third year Adler Fellow at San Francisco Opera. He will make his mainstage leading role debut as Cavaradossi in Puccini'sTosca on Friday, November 16, 2012 - you can catch him for 5 more performances on November 20, 24, 27, 29 and December 2. Brian made his SFO Debut in 2010 as Joe in Puccini's La Fanciulla del West and has been seen since in roles in Aida (Messenger), The Makropulos Case (Janek), and Lucrezia Borgia (Vitellozzo) and he has covered the leading roles of Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly, Christian in Cyrano de Bergerac, and Don José in Carmen. He was seen as Don José in the 2011 presentation of Carmen for Families - an abridged 2-hour version in English presented on the War Memorial Opera House stage with other members of the Adler Fellowship Program.

Introduction

Backstage at San Francisco Opera is a fascinating, fast-moving, mysterious and sacred space for the Company’s singers, musicians, dancers, technicians and production crews. Musical and staging rehearsals are on-going, scenery is loaded in and taken out, lighting cues are set, costumes and wigs are moved around and everything is made ready to receive the audience. From the principal singers, chorus and orchestra musicians to the creative teams for each opera, in addition to the many talented folks who don’t take a bow on stage, this blog offers unique insight, both thought-provoking and light-hearted, into the life backstage at San Francisco Opera.